Fire

The fire in Los Gallardos reminds us of the car trap. Surrounded by 800 degree flames, it is not a shelter but an oven

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The unprecedented tragedy of Los Gallardos and the district of Bédar (Almería), which has left at least eleven fatalitieshas broken all the schemes in Andalusia. It is the deadliest fire of the 21st century in Spain, leaving us with a devastating image of people who have lost their lives inside their own vehicles or a few meters from them when trying to flee down the wrong path. The UME has mobilized 150 troops and, as the hours pass, the tragedy reveals an even more bitter face: the first hypotheses suggest that the deceased could be foreign tourists. People who, in panic and not knowing the labyrinthine relief of the area, tried to escape via alternative routes, losing their orientation until they were cornered. The collapse of the system. To understand why this hell has broken out, we have to analyze this perfect storm. On July 9, 2026, the Andalusian emergency system encountered an unfathomable scenario for three fundamental reasons. Extreme simultaneity: while the flames devoured the east of Almería, at the other end of the community, in Benahavís (Málaga), an urban-forest fire forced the emergency evacuation of some 1,000 people, and with the AP-7 cut off. Having two sources of very high life risk at the same time requires dividing the air and land resources of the INFOCA Plan and the UME. Flash ignition: the origin in Los Gallardos was the fall of a power line near the N-340. The spark fell on a forest mass stressed by the very high temperatures and lack of humidity. The wind did the rest. Treacherous topography: Bédar is an area of ​​irregular relief, full of ravines, boulevards and scattered farmhouses. The fire advanced, devouring the slopes faster than a car could travel on a dirt road. The main road was blocked by smoke, forcing desperate evacuations towards Lubrín. The vision of firefighters: as extinction professionals, there are a warning that professionals have been warning for years, although we ignore when panic takes control: the car is the worst place to take refuge from a forest fire. And based on the European Automobile Commissioner (CEA)road safety specialists warn that you should never try to cross a flame front. The vast majority of fatalities in forest fires occur due to trying to save property, delaying escape or delaying evacuation. For example, Australia maintained a Stay and Defend or Leave Early policy until the devastating Black Saturday fires in 2009, which left 173 dead. It was then that the National Center for Biotechnology Information (PMC) analyzed the causes and determined new action protocols. A Molina-Terrén study of 2019 detailed that when civilians are harmed or killed, it occurs almost exclusively during evacuations that are carried out too late, when smoke already impedes visibility and radiant heat blocks escape routes, or when trying to protect agricultural assets and homes. A recent study reaffirmed this thesis. The oxygen factor. As pointed out by the services of Red Crossan engine needs oxygen to run. When the fire consumes all the oxygen in the environment, the car simply suffocates and stops. According to the firm ISK Fire Survivalwhich designs fireproof protection systems for fire trucks themselves, details how radiant heat is lethal for a standard vehicle without thermal armor: windshields can burst at temperatures above 300 ° C, leaving the passenger compartment exposed. A sixth generation fire consumes all available oxygen and expels carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen cyanide. With melted wheels, traction is lost and thick smoke reduces visibility to zero in seconds. And, since the car’s ventilation system is not airtight, it is the toxicity of the air that begins to affect the body. And when the fire corners or the car is already partially trapped, the next few seconds are critical. The order of how to act from then on is capital. Expert advice indicates: Find a clearing and park. Here the important thing is to look for the area with the least possible vegetation, stopping far from trees or dense bushes. If you can park behind a stone wall (from some old construction) or in a dirt clearing, a large open field or a plowed field, the better. Turn off the engine and block the air. That is, close the windows, turn off the air conditioning and activate air recirculation to delay the entry of toxic smoke into the passenger compartment as much as possible. It is also important to flash and turn on emergency lights to be visible. Cover yourself with natural materialsnever with plastics or synthetic fibers. A wool blanket or cotton jacket does not melt or melt as easily, so it will not cause such serious injuries. get on the ground. Literally, lying below the level of the windows, crouched under the seats, protects from the direct radiation that enters through the windows and the smoke that accumulates at the top. Don’t go out. The passage of the flame front lasts between 2 and 5 minutes. The interior of the car can withstand more than a body exposed to the elements, which means that it should only be abandoned if the fire has entered inside. Then the car becomes a trap. Images | EMA Infoca In Xataka | We thought that the worst had already happened in France, but it seems that its problems have only just begun: after the “infernal” heat comes the fire

Valencia has found a way to prevent fires like someone watering a garden: huge fire cannons

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Like someone watering a garden. 10,000 liters per minute at 42 meters away. The Valencian Community has a unique weapon to fight fire: fire cannons that are activated as soon as the environmental sensors detect the slightest outbreak of fire. And these sentinels are armored to entire neighborhoods. In the Devesa The Salerin Valencia city and under red notice due to high temperatures, eight fixed towers have been set up on Gola del Pujol avenue and a set of portable cannons that move through the natural park. The municipal forecast is to reach about 40 towers in 2031. The system began in the Colonia Santa Marina urbanization (Carcaixent), where the Forest Fire Defense System (SIDEINFO) already installed similar cannons in 2006 for collective defense against a neighborhood surrounded by mountains. Entrusted to Neptune. Guardian is the name of this project and it has no other purpose than to serve water cannons to create “green barriers” around key developments. The objective now is to expand in areas such as Masia de Traver, Els Pous, La Canyada (north and south) and Valencia La Vella. In Torrent, for example, the Vedat has been protected for more than a decade by 24 cannons distributed throughout the “green lung” of the city, covering more than 50 hectares of forest. They are activated automatically or manually when the risk increases, and the city council itself is considering bringing this same methodology to Serra Perenxisa using hydrants and pipes on forest trails. and it works. Already prevented a fire from spreading in the Túria Natural Park, dumping more than 218,000 liters of water in just over half an hour. Companies such as Hidraqua, Cetaqua, Medi XXI, along with the universities of Valencia are involved in this enormous project. In fact, Medi XXI also sells domestic and portable versions of these cannons for isolated homes and small urbanizations. While other communities face the same wave of fires with extreme confinement, as is the case of the entire population of Albeldain Castillonroy, resorting to the essential ES-Alert warnings and massive deployments of brigades and UME, Valencia has found another less reactive model. What is a fire cannon. It all starts with the SIDEINFO tower system. They are water monitors that measure between 12 and 16 meters high, shoot water about 42 meters away and mobilize almost double the discharge of a Canadair-type amphibious plane (about 6,000 liters at a time). They are fixed cannons, connected to tanks of about 500 m³ and pumping houses, integrated into a home automation network with sensors and weather stations that allow simulating the evolution of a fire and activating the irrigation/reinforcement system when the risk index demands it. In addition to moving large flows of water, they can also project foam with a range greater than 30-40 meters and can vary between manual, motorized or remote control. A difference between communities. The Valencian Community has become a testing laboratory. And the case of El Saler is quite unique: the city has been investing since 2023 in a system patented by the consulting firm Medi XXI GSA. The nucleus resides at that point where the CV-500 highway and the urban center intersect the forest. The engineer Ferran Dalmau argument that this system only makes sense at very specific points of the urban-forest interface, where opening large firebreaks would be unfeasible. Such an evacuation would cause a huge landscape impact, because it would leave a mountain with a giant bald patch. Although not everyone thinks the same: WWF Remember that these sprinkler systems are anecdotal for now and they are not clear that they work against high intensity fires. Once again, early detection, cleaning of perimeter vegetation and neighborhood self-protection plans are essential preventive guidelines. Protect yourself against maximum risk. In Valencia, where wind conditions can fan any spark, sometimes a fire overcomes the barriers of surveillance, forest management, mobile firefighting devices and, in short, the Special Plan against the Risk of Forest Fires (PEIF) itself. These cannons are, de facto, a reinforcement system. During the last few weeks, tracks and roads have been closed to traffic, the device has been reinforced with a forest nursery, El Saler Fire Station, Local Police and Civil Protection volunteers. This year, the deployment has mobilized 4,401 troops and 20 air resources throughout the Community, with 2,313 professionals in the province of Valencia, 56 forest firefighting units and 65 observatoriesten of them with 24-hour surveillance. Only in El Saler has a reinforcement of five firefighters and two extra patrol teams been activated. The Stop al Foc device of the Valencian Community brings together almost 1,700 professionals – 724 in the province of València, 470 in Castellón and 434 in Alicante – for a stage that, statistically, 68% is attributed to human activity (38% intentional, 30% due to negligence). The Albelda case. Some are saved and others burn? The difference with Huesca is clear: fewer water options, more unpopulated areas of territory and environmental conditions more conducive to fire. The declared fire at 18:15 In agricultural and forestry land, it devastated 100 hectares in a few hours and forced the Government of Aragon to raise the PROCINFO plan to operational situation 2. They cut off the N-230 and A-140 roads and the Military Emergency Unit (UME) is already there. It is already controlled, luckily, but the entire Tamarite de Litera area is at risk and the figures point to more than 400 hectares burned. All precautions are insufficient: the 2026 fire map is presented as the one with the highest incidence of forest fires in the EU. The Copernicus and FIRMS records speak of some 56,000 hectares burned, which represents almost 40% of the burned surface in the entire Union. The data from the Ministry for the Ecological Transition is somewhat lower (39,700 ha until June 21, you can consult here updated data), but they agree that June has been the most destructive month. Doubling the numbers. What’s more, 19 fires have been recorded from July 2 alone until … Read more

after the “infernal” heat comes the fire

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On the night of July 7 to 8, a 22-year-old volunteer firefighter died when a rock fell while trying to put out a forest fire in the commune of Planay, in the Tour du Merle massif. “Everything must burn”, said Ignacio Villaverdeinactive forest firefighter. And he is right, however, until very recently that point in the French Alps did not appear on fire danger maps. It is true that France is not yet experiencing its worst year of fires, but the flames have already devastated almost three times as much as in 2025 at this time of the year and we are at the beginning of July. With another heat wave knocking on the doors. What is happening? To put things in context, the modern record for fires in France occurred in 2022. It was about 66,000 hectares. Now the counter is at about 14,500 hectares. However, it wouldn’t be fair to compare a full season with a nascent one. Above all, because this year France (and thanks to the three heat waves that are almost in a chain) has started to burn much earlier than normal. As explained the Prime Minister, Sébastien Lecornu, That they are not in record global numbers does not mean that there are precedents for what they are experiencing. France is learning what heat is. We already know that on July 7, the 41.5 °C in Dordogne and Aude; that on the 8th, 67 departments were on orange alert and that Météo-France placed 47 at high fire risk. The French also know this (and better than anyone). What they don’t know and are starting to learn is that “a few days of heat wave” is not the same as a hot summer. In the second case, things change and what was not dangerous before becomes a bomb box. What was foliage last year is fuel today. And in fact, it affects us all.. Because, although it is easy to draw a parallel between what is happening here and what is happening in France, the truth is that the fires are already affecting us: the closure of the A9 hitchhiker, the evacuated campsites in Catalonia and Castellón and until the Tour de France (which banned the public in its third stage) They are clear signs of a problem that is affecting us in real time. The future that knocks at the door. Unexpectedly, France has become the great laboratory of how climate change can make life impossible for Europe with hardly any effort and in a very short time. It’s not just the blinds, chalk or yogurt: France is exposed to a good number of problems for which it is not prepared. The heat, they say, will last until the middle of the month, with a possible peak around the 14th of this month. So everything points to a long season. And the problems in France have only just begun. Image | Guillaume Jauseau In Xataka | “There they also reach 40 degrees and the trains are not cancelled”: Germany and France need to imitate Spain to survive the heat

There’s a reason China doesn’t fire nuclear missiles from its most dangerous submarine. You just broke that rule

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The greatest strength of a nuclear submarine is not its firepower, but that no one knows where it is. This ability to remain hidden for months has made these ships the most important pillar of nuclear deterrence since the Cold War and explains why each movement related to them is analyzed with a magnifying glass. It wasn’t just any test. China has insisted that the launch was part of its annual training and that it had previously notified the countries of the region. However, few maneuvers generate as much attention as the ballistic missile shot from a strategic nuclear submarine into the Pacific Ocean. Not only that, since it was an action practically unpublished in decades. Beijing had been avoiding a public demonstration of this type for years and, precisely for this reason, the test has been interpreted as a message directed far beyond the military exercise itself. The letter that is never shown. Missile submarines are the most discreet and valuable component of any nuclear power. Its main advantage is in remaining hidden for weeks or months, guaranteeing a retaliatory capacity even if the country suffers a first attack. This need to maintain secrecy explains why China has barely made public launches from this type of platform and that each demonstration has enormous strategic weight. The signal was directed to the United States. Although the Chinese authorities they emphasized that the missile carried a training warhead and was not directed against any country, the context tell another story. Western analysts believe that the test was intended to demonstrate that Chinese submarines can now launch very long-range missiles. from nearby areas on its own coasts and continue hitting targets thousands of kilometers away. In other words, Beijing wanted to remind that its maritime deterrence capacity is entering a new phase of maturity. Type 094 Submarine A doctrine designed to reduce risks. Everything indicates that the launch took place from protected waters close to China, a strategy known as “bastion.” Instead of sending its submarines to the center of the Pacific, the idea is to keep them under the cover of national aviation, fleet and anti-missile systems while retaining the ability to attack very distant targets. If the new JL-2 or JL-3 missiles They fulfill the benefits attributed to them by analysts, these submarines no longer need to travel too far from home to reach US territory. Nuclear expansion continues. Because the test comes in full modernization process of Chinese strategic forces. Beijing is building new silos for intercontinental missiles, deploying more advanced generations of land-based missiles and increasing the number of ballistically capable nuclear submarines. Pentagon estimates suggest that the Chinese arsenal could exceed a thousand nuclear warheads before 2030a transformation that is changing the military balance in the Indo-Pacific. The Pacific responds worried. Australia, Japan, New Zealand and Taiwan reacted criticizing a pitch which they consider destabilizing for the region, despite having received prior notification. The criticism was not directed solely at the missile, but in the context of a rapid increase in Chinese military capabilities and an increasingly visible naval presence in the Pacific. For many governments, the test represents a new step in a show of force strategy that had already included tests of intercontinental missiles and naval maneuvers increasingly distant from Chinese coasts. The real novelty was not the missile. It is known that China has had ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear weapons for years. What is really new is that he has decided show publicly how one of its strategic submarines can use them, something it had almost completely avoided until now. In fact, the demonstration increases the credibility of your ability of retaliation, forces its rivals to assume that these submarines are fully operational and confirms that Beijing is willing to use its military tests as another tool of political and strategic deterrence. Image | PLA In Xataka | Satellite images leave no doubt: China has launched an underwater creature into the sea that defies naval engineering In Xataka | From cultivating the field to sailing underwater: the Chinese farmer who makes homemade submarines in his free time

Echo, Fire TV stick, Kindle and more on sale before Prime Day

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Prime Day 2026 is just around the corner, and as usual Amazon has launched a small preview with offers on its own devices. There is plenty to choose from, so we are going to review the best deals on Kindle, Fire TV Stick, Echo and more. Fire TV Stick HD by 21.99 eurosa very economical dongle to turn almost any TV into a smart one. Echo Dot by 29.99 eurosa smart speaker that serves as a base for home automation. Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition (pack) by 256.97 eurosa pack that includes both the eReader and a case and a charging base. Ring Indoor Camera Plus by 29.99 eurosan indoor surveillance camera. Echo Show 11 by 154.99 eurosa smart speaker that integrates an 11-inch screen. Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition (pack) The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Fire TV Stick HD Amazon has decided to lower the price of the Fire TV Stick and the cheapest model is once again the Fire TV Stick HDwhich for 21.99 euros (previously 44.99 euros) is ideal for those who want to convert a “dumb” TV into a smart one. Obviously, its resolution is Full HD, so if you have a 4K TV, the best option is the Fire TV Stick 4K Selectwhich is also on sale for a similar price of 23.99 euros (before 54.99 euros). The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Echo Dot We can also find on offer the Echo Dotthe model that has a spherical design. Its price has dropped to 29.99 euros (previously 64.99 euros), making it the best smart speaker to have as a base for home automation. It has the Alexa assistant and is also compatible with Alexa+. You can use it as a Bluetooth speaker for your mobile and even consoles like Nintendo Switch. The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition (pack) With Kindle things are very different. There are no offers on Amazon eReaders, except for one exception: the Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition has dropped in price in a pack that includes a case (there are several colors to choose from) along with a wireless charging base. All this for 256.97 euros (before 341.08 euros). Models on their own, without add-ons, there is no offer, so This pack is cheaper than if you buy the same reader right now without anything else. Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition (pack) The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Ring Indoor Camera Plus Of course, Ring devices cannot be missing. There is a lot to choose from, but we find the price of the Ring Indoor Camera Pluswhich remains for 29.99 euros (before 59.99 euros). It is an indoor security camera that offers 2K resolution, is compatible with Alexa and has two-way communication. Ring Indoor Camera Plus The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Echo Show 11 Lastly, the Echo Show 11 has also dropped in price, in this case to 154.99 euros (before 239.99 euros). It is a device similar to the Echo Dot because we are talking about a smart speaker, but it has the particularity of having a screen. This screen shows information that we can configure, such as the temperature, but it also allows you to play content from platforms such as Netflix or Prime Video. The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Some of the links in this article are affiliated and may provide a benefit to Xataka. In case of non-availability, offers may vary. Images | amazon In Xataka | Which Kindle to buy: buying guide with recommendations to get it right with Amazon e-book readers In Xataka | Best Amazon Fire TV. Which one to buy and recommended models to convert your TV into a smart TV depending on use

A beach in Sardinia has banned umbrellas for people between 10 and 65 years old. The reason is simple: fire

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Summer yes, summer too, dermatologists they insist on the importance of protecting ourselves from the sun’s rays with creams, caps and umbrellas. In Molentis Pointone of the beaches most popular of Sardinia, the bathers they will have to conform however with the first two tools. If they want to plant an umbrella in the sand they will have to meet a series of requirements, beyond paying the 10 euros it costs to access the cove: the parasols will only be available to families with children or people who have already turned 65 years old. The rest have to burn. What has happened? Villasimìus is a commune of Cagliari, in the Italian region of Sardinia, where slightly less than 4,000 people. Despite this, it has been making headlines for days in the media throughout Italy and the rest of Europe, including headlines within the scope of Guardian, cnn either The Telegraph. The reason is not so much the spectacular nature of its beaches and its attractiveness at the gates of summer (which too), but rather the effects of that pull: faced with the avalanche of visitors, the local authorities have decided prohibit that the majority of bathers use umbrellas on the sandy beach. No umbrellas? More or less. Which have decided in Villasimìus is that the majority of the population cannot bring their own umbrellas to Punta Molentis. This privilege is restricted to only two groups: families with children under 10 years old and adults over 65. The large group between 10 and 65 years old that remains in the middle will have to make do with protecting themselves from the sun of the Sardinian coast with caps and a good sunscreen. Not only that. In a statement Posted on its official website, the commune of Villasimìus details other measures that bathers must take into account: the number of vehicles and people that can be simultaneously in the area is limited, as is the influx of bathers arriving by boat. The rules also include time guidelines and a warning: those who go to the beach should know that there is an “environmental ticket” of 10 euros for those who travel by car. If you go by boat the fee remains at 5 euros. But… Why? The authorities insist on the need to protect the natural environment and remember the serious forest fire that the region experienced last summer, when dozens of tourists had to flee in boats. The flames spread so quickly that they burned cars stationed in the area, they blocked land escape routes and caused serious environmental damage, environmentalists warn. “The Punta Molentis ecosystem is one of the most valuable in our territory, but also one of the most fragile. The forest fires of 2025 and exceptional weather phenomena have reduced the capacity of the dunes and put habitats and biodiversity to the test,” warns the commune. “It is necessary to limit the human impact and ensure the protection of heritage for future generations.” Part of the rules disclosed by the Villasimìus authorities. What do people think? The Government argues that it wants to protect the environment and preserve the natural wealth of the beach. Neither one nor the other seems to have convinced bathers, who were quick to use irony to question the ban on umbrellas. “How wonderful, a beautiful day at the beach and 20 hours in the emergency room for burns. I think they’ve tried this ordinance before and it went wrong,” comments sarcastically a user on networks. At stake would not only be the environmental wealth of the coast. A spokesperson for the Villasimìus town council assured this week to CNN that behind the veto of the parasols there are also security reasons: they want to reduce their number to prevent situations like those of 2025 from being repeated. “It is fundamentally because of that fire and the difficulties we had in evacuating the beach due to the large number of umbrellas installed that the city council has established this rule,” recognize from the Italian commune, who remember that in that area there are no paid ‘beach clubs’, so “people place umbrellas next to each other, blocking access, causing risks and obstructing the view of the sea.” The Telegraph precise that in the bathing area you can rent parasols. Does it only happen in Sardinia? Villasimìus’s decision has attracted attention because it is unorthodox, but the truth is that the use of umbrellas (and other beach equipment) on the sandy beaches has not only generated controversy there. In Italy the ‘beach clubs’ have generated debate after, according to Altronconsumo calculationsthe rental of sun loungers and umbrellas has skyrocketed by 24% in just five years. Beyond Italy, in Greece they have just expand your list of “virgin” sandbanks where the rental of umbrellas is prohibited. Here, in Spain, the use of furniture on the beaches (and that includes everything from parasols to tents and windbreaks) also has generated debate the last years. Images | Heather Cowper (Flickr) and Villasimius SRL In Xataka | It is increasingly common to find jellyfish on Mediterranean beaches before summer. And it’s a bad sign

We were already using fire 800,000 years earlier than we thought

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He dominion of fire isWithout a doubt, the greatest turning point in the technological and evolutionary history of our lineage. It gave us warmth, it scared away predators and, by allowing us to cook food, it triggered the development of our brains and also our own lives. Until now, the scientific consensus placed the strongest evidence of its early use at around one million years, although this is no longer the case. A new study. a new study published in PLOS ONE takes us to Wonderwerk Cave, in the northern Cape province of South Africa. This site was already “old acquaintance” for paleoanthropologists, since in 2012 a team demonstrated the existence of fire on site in layer 10 of the cave, dated to approximately one million years. And this is important because from here the consensus was created about when humans discovered fire. But the story didn’t end there. The new study has descended one more step in time, specifically to layer 11 of the same cave and there they have found burned bones with an age that ranges between 1.07 and 1.79 million years. And it is vital. The location of the remains is vital, since they were found 30 meters deep inside the cavern. This completely rules out that the fire marks are the product of a random forest fire or a lightning strike, but rather that someone had to carry those flames there after learning to control the fire. A new debate. The evidence that suggests that our past knew how to make fire is much later, since in sites such as Gesher Benot Ya’aqov In Israel, total control of technology is already shown. What this new finding raises is whether these Homo erectus early people did not know how to light a fire from scratch. What is proposed is that instead they were “thieves” of nature, since they took advantage of natural fires caused by lightning or volcanoes, collected the embers and transported them inside the cave to keep them alive as long as possible. A technique that, although it seems simple, entails great cognitive and social complexity. The technology. If the fire in layer 11 had not been confirmed until now, it is because it is incredibly difficult to distinguish a bone burned almost two million years ago from a fossilized bone that has undergone chemical alterations. And it is no wonder, since with the passage of millennia, diagenetic processes such as fluoridation or the accumulation of manganese can darken the fossils, giving them a false appearance of having been carbonized. But now we have very important tools, such as luminescence techniques combined with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, which allow us to reveal chemical secrets at the molecular level. A new paradigm. The experts who have given their opinion on this study through the Science Media Center Spain such as Joaquín Panera or researchers specialized in fire such as Aitor Burguet-Coca agree in describing the methodological protocol as “innovative”, highlighting that it opens the door to reevaluate huge collections of fossils in other sites, such as Koobi Fora in Kenya, where there are ambiguous signs of fire 1.5 million years ago. In Xataka | We had always believed that evolution had been arrested for thousands of years. The redheads were telling us the opposite

A drone has set fire to the perimeter of the first Arab nuclear power plant

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During the war between Iran and Iraq in 1982, a missile accidentally hit near the plant Iran’s Bushehr nuclear when it was still under construction. The incident sowed such concern international that for decades civil nuclear facilities in the Middle East were surrounded by a kind of unwritten taboo even in the midst of the region’s toughest conflicts. A drone and a border that no one wanted to cross. For years, Gulf monarchies assumed that their large energy infrastructures could be vulnerable to missiles or attacks on refineries, ports and pipelines. But there was one psychological line that seemed to remain intact: nuclear power plants. The fire caused by a drone in the perimeter of Barakah, the first nuclear plant trade of the Arab world, has changed that. Although there was no radioactive leak or damage inside the reactor, the simple fact that an unmanned aircraft reached the immediate surroundings of a nuclear facility in the middle of the war between Iran, the United States and Israel has opened a completely new scene for regional security. The Gulf has just entered unknown territory: it is no longer just about protecting oil and gas, but about defending civilian nuclear facilities against cheap, difficult to intercept and politically explosive attacks. Much more than electricity. The Barakah central It occupies a particularly sensitive place within the Emirati strategy. Built with South Korean technology and operational since 2021, it provides around of a quarter of the country’s electricity and represents the great project with which the Emirates tried to diversify its energy economy and reduce its dependence on fossil fuels. That is why the attack has a symbolic burden enormous even if the damage was limited. Hitting the Barakah perimeter means demonstrating that no strategic infrastructure is completely out of reach of the drone war that already dominates the Middle East. Also launches another disturbing message: Civilian nuclear facilities are beginning to enter the risk map of modern regional conflicts. The Gulf War no longer revolves only around oil. The truth is that the evolution of the conflict is profoundly altering the security logic of the entire region. Since the start of the war, Iran has launched thousands of drones and missiles against the Emirates and other Gulf countries to increase the economic and political cost of the campaign led by the United States and Israel. Until now, much of the concern has focused on Hormuz, energy exports and maritime traffic. But he Barakah incident expands the problem into another, much more delicate dimension. An attack against a nuclear power plant, even if it is peripheral, immediately forces international alarms to be activated, involve the International Atomic Energy Agency and propose scenarios that until recently seemed unlikely in the region. The real problem. The most uncomfortable thing for the Emirates and its allies is that the attack proves again a reality that has already been seen in Ukraine, Russia or the Red Sea: even extremely rich and protected countries have enormous difficulties in stopping relatively simple and cheap drones. According to the Emiratesthree aircraft penetrated from the western border and one of them managed to reach the external electrical generator of Barakah despite the existing defenses. The scene perfectly sums up the current imbalance of modern warfare. A small drone can force the activation of nuclear protocols, trigger diplomatic tensions and generate global concern at a negligible cost compared to the gigantic air defense investments of the Gulf states. An increasingly fragile truce. The attack also arrives in one of the most tense moments since the ceasefire between Iran and the United States. Donald Trump has toughened his speech against Tehran (a few hours ago he even said he was about to attack Iran before to stop the operation), Israel speculate again openly with a resumption of the war and the Emirates has become the Arab country more aggressive against Iran during the conflict. Abu Dhabi directly accuses to Iran or its regional allies for having crossed an extremely dangerous line. The problem is that the Barakah incident demonstrates the extent to which the region has entered a phase where escalation can occur. through ambiguous attackscheap and difficult to attribute with complete clarity. And that makes every downed drone (or every drone what gets through) now has the potential to trigger a much larger crisis. Image | Store N., Wikimedia In Xataka | Iran is about to inaugurate in Hormuz a concept that has the shape of a global nightmare: the underwater toll In Xataka | Dubai has come to the same conclusion as Russia. To protect your oil from drones there is something better than missiles: giant cages

its lunar lander just passed a NASA fire test

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The race between SpaceX and Blue Origin to land on the Moon continue and Jeff Bezos’ company has just taken a big step forward. This week, testing of its MK1 lander in NASA’s vacuum chamber was successfully completed. This demonstrates that it is ready to take NASA payloads to our satellite this year and, above all, that it is on the right track to also take the Artemis astronauts to the lunar surface. Everything under control. MK1 is an uncrewed cargo lander. NASA has chosen it to take two payloads to the Moon at the end of this year. On the one hand, the stereoscopic cameras for the surface study of the lunar plumes at the south pole. On the other hand, the retroreflective laser array, which will help find the location of the instruments placed in orbit. To verify that the landing system is ready, it has been tested in NASA’s vacuum chamber A, where the conditions it will be exposed to during its space trip are emulated. The results have been positive, which is why they represent a great advance for Blue Origin and a reason for SpaceX’s fear. A camera to imitate space. NASA Camera A It is a vacuum chamber, 27 meters highin which temperatures fluctuate between -50ºC and 30ºC. It is used to imitate space conditions and check the performance and stability of the systems that are planned to be brought there. In the case of the MK1, it has been proven that it has great structural resistance and that it withstands thermal stress as expected. From MK1 to MK2. In general, the results of these tests They have been very positive. Even so, there have been learnings that will be applied in the development of MK2, the manned lander with which it is expected to perform commercial services for NASA. Logically, the main manned commercial service that Blue Origin wants to be part of is the Artemis program. But there is a competitor with the same purpose. The race against SpaceX. NASA launched the development of the HLS manned landing system for Artemis in the hands of SpaceX and Blue Origin. Both have received funding for the development of their respective technologies, so the US space agency ensures that it will keep the one that finishes first. As long as the result is reliable, of course. It seemed that in this competition SpaceX clearly had the upper hand. However, some recent bugs and delays are allowing Blue Origin advance and continue in the fight. Will you pass them on the right? For now, the situation is equal. We’ll have to wait and see what happens, but the success of the MK1 tests leaves plenty of room for optimism for Jeff Bezos’ space company. Images | POT In Xataka | The launch pads are saturated for all space companies. For all but one: SpaceX

50 years later, the Soviet fire of the “Gates to Hell” is going out. And it’s not good news

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In 1971, in the heart of the Karakum Desert, a group of Soviet engineers observed how the ground was sinking under his feet after a failed drilling. What came next was not an immediate evacuation or closure of the area, but rather an improvised decision that, according to who witnessed itseemed like a quick solution to a specific problem. That choice, taken almost as another technical procedure, would end up having consequences that no one at that time was able to anticipate. The eternal fire goes out. During more than half a centurythe Darvaza crater has burned relentlessly in the middle of the desert, becoming an almost permanent image of inexhaustible fire that seemed to defy any natural logic. However, the most recent data show a clear change: the intensity of the flames has fallen drastically in recent years, losing more than 7% of its strength. What for decades was a constant spectacle begins to weaken, altering the perception of a phenomenon that many considered eternal. The origin between legend and Soviet heritage. The birth of the crater is still shrouded in all kinds of stories and uncertainty, although the most widespread and feasible version points to the accident. during Soviet drilling in search of gas in the sixties or seventies. According to this theory, the ground collapsed when it reached a pocket of natural gas and the engineers they decided to set fire to the site to prevent the release of toxic gases, convinced that it would be extinguished in a short time. Thus, what was going to last weeks lasted for decadesfed by an underground network of gas that never stopped flowing, giving rise to one of the best-known anomalies of the energy legacy of the former Soviet Union. From remote curiosity to global icon. Over time, the crater went from being a geological oddity to becoming a almost mythical destiny for travelers and explorers, despite the difficulties in accessing Turkmenistan. Its image, a gigantic burning cavity in the middle of nowhere, has fueled so much adventure tourism like internal propagandato the point of being used by country leaders as a symbol of power or control. The experience of approaching the edge and feeling the direct heat of the fire has reinforced its reputation as a unique place in the world. The attempt at control and doubts about its decline. For its part, the Turkmen government has years trying to control emissions from the crater, and attributes part of the recent weakening to new drilling nearby plants intended to extract gas. However, the independent analyzes They suggest that the loss of intensity could have begun before these interventions, which opens the door to natural causes that are not yet fully understood. This nuance introduces a key and dangerous uncertainty: it is not clear whether the end of the phenomenon responds to human action or to a change in the geological system itself. The unexpected twist: less fire does not mean less problem. Yes, because although At first glance, the reduction of the flames could seem like good news from an environmental point of view, the reality it is more complex. Fire acts as a mechanism that transforms methane (much more powerful as a greenhouse gas) into carbon dioxide, reducing its impact in the short term. If the flames subside, more methane could be released directly into the atmospherewhich would make progressive shutdown a potentially bigger problem. A fragile balance that is still active. Despite its weakening, the crater remains activewith visible flames and constant emissions that remind us that the phenomenon has not disappeared. The huge amount of gas accumulated underground suggests that the fire will not be completely extinguished in the short term, maintaining that strange balance between natural spectacle, industrial legacy and environmental problem. Thus, half a century later, the symbol of eternal fire begins to change, although its disappearance does not necessarily imply a more favorable end for the rest of the planet. Image | Stefan Krasowski, Tormod Sandtorv In Xataka | China’s first pipeline network is 4,000 years old and something revolutionary: it was built without the need for kings or nobles In Xataka | About to close, this remote mine in the Polar Circle has found a 2 billion-year-old yellow diamond that weighs 158 carats

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